Since starting preschool more than a year ago (!), Miles had been bringing a vintage whole cloth quilt for his nap time blanket. (He doesn't take a daily nap anymore, but still has quiet activities, books, and blanket snuggles during rest time.) That blanket, while so beloved, just couldn't stand up to the weekly laundering and was starting to fray, so I decided to make a replacement.
I wasn't feeling up for piecing together another quilt like the playmat I'd just finished for the baby, so I decided to replicate the blanket Miles was already using and sew a simple whole cloth quilt with hand ties. It's reversible, and since everything he brings to school needs to be labeled with his name, I embroidered that in one corner before putting everything together.
Both flannels (and the batting) are from Joann Fabrics. The navy blue yarn for the ties was from my stash.
I can't remember exactly what size fabric I used. (Isn't that terrible?) And as it's Thursday when I'm writing this, the quilt is currently living at preschool. I'm guessing it's around 45" x 60".
I started by pre-washing everything except the batting (the label said there was no need). Then I used transfer paper and a transfer pencil [affiliate links] to trace Miles's name backwards, then ironed it onto the fabric and embroidered over it.
Next I laid one of the flannel fabric pieces over the batting, and used safety pins to mark where I wanted the hand ties to be. It's a bit hard to see, but they're in the picture below.
Then I used a large needle threaded with navy blue yarn to tie the batting to the fabric where indicated by the pins.
Afterwards, I trimmed the extra batting from around the flannel piece.
Next I laid the floral piece of flannel right side down on top of the checked one (so right sides together with the batting layer underneath), pinned it into place, and stitched almost all the way around, leaving a gap through which to turn the quilt right side out.
I clipped the corners, turned the quilt right side out, and carefully stitched the gap closed. Top-stitching is an option here too but the quilt is doing just fine without it.
I washed the quilt right away to remove the transfer pencil marks – and the yarn for the hand ties frayed immediately! It still remains securely knotted though, and I don't think Miles minds :) Next time I'll make sure to use superwash yarn.
This project was simple enough to do in an afternoon, and Miles was sooo excited to get a blanket of his own after watching me knitting one for baby for such a long time. I really love the colors, and the flannel makes it so cozy. Plus, so far it's standing up well to weekly washing!
